Skills development in South Africa has many benefits. Additional to the financial incentive, what is also beneficial is the great opportunity for businesses to develop their own pipeline of individuals in order to scope them according to the culture of your company.
With skills development training you can do more than just fill the skills gap in your company; you are in a position to fill the skills gap in your country too.
In order to understand how you can benefit from our training, you need some insight into how skills development has developed over the last couple of years.
What Makes Traditional Training Ineffective?
Summit has pushed the boundaries of skills development so we are able to confidently bring training solutions to our clients that see significant results. In order to do this, we have evaluated traditional training methods that many businesses have settled with, and come up with ways to revolutionise that training so that companies see real development.
So, what makes old-school training ineffective?
Results in irregular, inconvenient classroom training
Traditional training methodologies that take employees out of their working environment and put them into a classroom for extended periods of time, has in the last few years, been found to be ineffective. This is not only because of work-flow disruption, but also because it in no way encourages engagement and interaction from learners. Businesses can’t put all of their learners into a classroom for a day-long intervention and expect a real change in their company to come from that alone.
Doesn’t address the individual
Where in the past, groups were provided with general skills training, we have intentionally focused on the individual learner to create unique learning journeys that compliment their specific skills development gaps.
To illustrate this point, Summit offers training to our employees in senior positions of management and leadership. This training not only addresses skills development in general areas such as management theories and how to apply them in the work environment, but also in their individual career pathways. This training will pinpoint specific skills that these employees will need in their roles.
We like to offer this (more) focused approach, instead of just throwing everybody in a classroom together and expecting significant growth in each individual.
What Effect Has The Pandemic Had on Training?
I’d say that the pandemic has generally had a positive impact on the future of skills development. It has forced businesses to evaluate the systems they currently have in place and rely more on their staff to carry the company (making employee training essential).
When it comes to physical staff training, we can also see positive growth, where businesses are saving costs on travel expenses, venue hiring and time out of business working hours. Training is now facilitated largely online, making learning flexible, scalable and accessible. Businesses can now view training as an investment, rather than an expense.
How Businesses Can Benefit From Partnering With Us to Support South Africa’s Skills Gap
Relief of administration pressure
We are unique in offering assistance to lighten the load of training administration, as we find that it is one of the biggest factors that intimidate businesses.
It is possible for businesses to handle funding applications, recruitment and other administration duties on their own, but be prepared that it is a long and tedious process.
When you partner with us, we take responsibility for your funding applications, recruitment, training, coaching and mentoring, leave schedules, and all other admin processes that need to take place.
BBBEE scorecard
A large driver in skills development in South Africa are the benefits that result from increasing your BBBEE scorecard level.
The government has acknowledged a large skills gap in critical roles in South Africa, and so has provided funding and other financial benefits to companies who support the skills development initiative in the country. Tax benefits, for instance, allow businesses to claim back enough money from tax deductions, that it could potentially pay off your skills training, and more.
There are considerable financial benefits that make training appealing to organisations, but nothing beats the greater purpose behind skills development than increasing gainful employment in South Africa.
Watch this video to see how Summit’s purpose has evolved and discover how you can partner with us to fill your company’s and ultimately the country’s skills gap.